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Lions Clubs International - District 105M - Midland News

Ordinary People doing Amazing Things


 



Redditch Lions Club & Community First Responders 

 

Lion President Bill Southworth handing over the keys to Studley First Responder Martin Barry
 

Redditch Lions Club have recently taken on a project of supporting the NHS Community First Responders Ambulance volunteers.

The Community First Responders Scheme operates under the supervision of the West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS). The scheme consists of a team of volunteers who are trained by the WMAS to a nationally recognised level in emergency first aid and provide life saving treatment to people in their local community with a rapid response time.

In many illnesses and injuries, the first few minutes of treatment are crucial. For instance, after a patient has collapsed following a cardiac arrest, every minute that a defibrillator is not used, the chance of survival is reduced by 7 – 10%. The First Responders, controlled by the ambulance 999 service, cover the areas within around a 5 mile radius of their base.

However, the Teams are 100% volunteers and rely completely on the support and generosity of the people within the community to fund the service. They receive no salary and have to supply their own uniforms and equipment, including vehicles and fuel.

The Team that Redditch Lions are supporting, Studley, (Studley once had it's own Lions Club) operate 24/7 and over the last six months, have responded to in excess of 300, 999 calls.

Having first encountered the Team at a local Fête, a Club member, Lion Dave Beech, proposed to the Club that it should consider some means of supporting them by supplying funds to purchase sorely need equipment. It was decided to make it a long term project and continue donations and equipment over the forthcoming years. At the same time as this decision was taken, an ex-NHS fast response ambulance car was up for decommissioning at an extremely low cost of £1200. This car complete with blue and yellow decals, defibrillator, emergency radio equipment, lights etc, was immediately purchased and handed over to the Studley Community First Responders at a fund raising event just before Christmas last year. (see attached photo).

The car is now in full operation and carries the Lions logo, front and back, plus wording that it was donated by Redditch Lions Club. Excellent PR, not only for the Club, but Lions Clubs generally. So excellent in fact, that displaying the car and Redditch's support of the scheme at one of the supermarkets at Christmas, an anonymous donor, after talking to Club members, purchased and donated a second car to be made up to a rapid response level. This car is just about to go into full operation and with another volutneer about to pass their final exams, a shift pattern can now be introduced. Up to now, each of the current three volunteers, have very little personal time.

Now that is a good PR result and, perhaps, something other clubs could consider as there are community responders in a lot of towns just wishing they had the support that we in Redditch have been able to give.




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